West Coast legend Glen Jakovich has called for the AFL to tear up its Grand Final contract with the MCG to fully embrace being a national competition.
The current deal with the MCG expires in 2057 and all indications are that the decider will again be played at the game's spiritual home of football amid the coronavirus pandemic.
In a week where the league's 'Victoria bias' has been hotly debated, the dual premiership Eagle has joined in the chorus.
โIf you want a truly national competition you have to adhere to what the national competition means,โ Jakovich told The Herald Sun.
โIf a team earns the right to hold the Grand Final and they have got the stadium to facilitate the Grand Final then they hold it. Thatโs what the national competition means.
โIt is equalisation and you get the right.
โThe fact there is a contract in place, that is no different to the contract in place when we were guinea pigs in those finals and finished higher than Victorian-placed sides and under Vic-centric rules we travelled to play in a final against an opponent ranked lower than us. Talk to me about 1996.โ
Jakovich explained that every other state has the necessary infrastructure to host the big dance.
โIf you want a national competition there are states like WA, NSW and SA that have stadiums of 50,000 or more,โ he said.
โIf itโs black and white you say these are the parameters. The highest-placed team has earnt the right and thatโs the way it goes.โ
The AFL Hall of Famer also objected the AFL banning the WA clubs from training together in groups of 10 given the travel disadvantages they regularly face.
โThere are bigger things the AFL need to put their energy into,โ Jakovich said.
โJust because we are open 10 days or two weeks earlier (than other states) why does that mean we canโt train together?
โIt is nitpicking by Victoria and the AFL for doing that. Jump on a plane every second week and then see how it goes. We would like to play seven games at Optus Stadium.โ
